Nick Marini chats to Mandy News about working with Seinfeld's Jason Alexander, playing music on screen and funny stories from the set of Hit the Road.

25th November 2017
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By Anna Ben Yehuda

BENJOARWAS

Nick Marini avoided Hollywood for as long as he could.

“I used to want to be a diplomat,” says the 26-year-old actor over the phone.

“It wasn’t until tenth grade, when I went to Washington, DC to shadow a person who worked for a think tank, that I realized that that was not going to be the thing for me.”

Fast-forward a decade and Marini stars alongside Jason Alexander in Hit the Road, an AT&T original TV comedy about a travelling musical family hoping to be the next great American family band.

With both parents in show business (“the family corner store,” as he jokingly describes), Marini’s landing on television isn’t too surprising.

“Having parents who can guide you has made a huge difference,” he says.

“I grew up watching my dad direct and watching my mom act. They worked at some of the best theatres in the east coast. So I got an amazing education without even realising.”

Below, the actor shares a funny story from the set, his ultimate acting bucket list and more.

BENJOARWAS

Hit the Road star Nick Marini

On the show, you’re a musician. Do you play in real life?No. I don’t play music or sing so I bled my fingers dry learning how to play a few chords on the guitar. It was actually really fun because of the comedy—I had to work really hard to learn but it all seems to have paid off. For the show I got to learn some bass guitar. I really like bass guitar. You’re kind of like the backbone, keeping it going.

The cast spends so much time together shooting, do you have any funny stories from the set to share?On our literal first day of shooting we were shooting a scene where we jumped in a pool, so I was in swimming trunks and they gave us robes to wear to keep warm. I was leaving the set to go grab some food and a customer ran after me saying, “I just need to snap a photo of what you’re wearing!” Just as she’s saying that, an old woman is driving by behind me, so I just open up my robe for the picture and this old woman thinks I’m flashing [the person in front of me!]. The old woman looked so aghast at what I was doing. There were a lot of instances like that, where anyone watching from the outside must have been wondering what we were doing.

Jason Alexander is a major part of the show. How was working with him?He’s awesome. He was so fun. Even at the first callback, he was so kind and supportive. When you’re in an audition room, it can be really stressful, and to have that person that you know you’re trying to impress be supportive, patient and engaging means a lot.

Do you have a bucket list of actors you’d still like to work with?Yes. I would love to work with Dame Judi Dench. She is such an awesome actress. To get yelled at by her or put in place by her in a scene would be so cool. Sam Rockwell is another one that I really love. I think his ability to do comedy and drama and be a bit of a chameleon is awesome. I love his work.

What advice can you offer to up-and-coming actors like yourself?Two things. Firstly, I’ve seen people move to Los Angeles and leave after two years. [I want to tell them that] this is a marathon, not a sprint. You have to keep smashing your head against the door until it opens.

The other piece of advice I would give is [be prepared]. I used to PA a lot in college and it was really important because it meant that when I got on set as an actor, it wasn’t my first time on set. I knew what different people’s jobs were and I knew how to navigate everything really confidently. I also think that working as a PA on the other side of the camera gives you an understanding of what other people are doing and you can help them do that as an actor. If you know how the camera works, you have a better idea of where to stand. If you know how lighting works, you have a better idea of how to find the light.

There’s always more to learn as an actor, that’s what is exciting about it.